Dr Adam Pritchard1
1Royal Flying Doctor Service, Cairns, Australia, 2Lifeflight Retrieval Medicine, Cairns, Australia
Providing medical care in remote locations is a challenging task, made more difficult by primary trauma, hostile environment, and time-critical injury.
Bringing together multiple agencies to provide ‘onsite’ support, expert extrication techniques and equipment, pre-hospital anaesthesia, trauma care, and aeromedical evacuation requires visibility and familiarity of multiple interacting processes, all of which are crucial in delivering an appropriate and timely response.
This case discussion will highlight the significant logistical, environmental and clinical challenges faced by the retrieval team following a high speed MVA with entrapment and possible crush injury in a very remote location at night. Prehospital management is discussed including scene control and preparation, anticipation and management of crush injury, extrication techniques and trauma principles.
Biography:
Adam Pritchard is the Aeromedical Lead with the RFDS based in Cairns. Adam has been with the RFDS for 14 years working in the field of remote rural generalist medicine and aeromedical retrieval. He also currently works as a rotary wing retrieval physician for LifeFlight in Cairns and as a senior medical officer in Mossman Hospital. Adam enjoys the variety and challenge that retrieval medicine provides, working in remote and resource limited environments and the great outdoors.